Grave-record.



No. 843,029. PATENTED FEB. 5, 1907.

T. P. PIGG.

GRAVE RECORD. APPLIQATION FILED 31 111, 1906.

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PATENTED FEB. 5, 1907.

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R 0 9 1 n GOD mm D P m P P N T m RT GA 0 I L P P A UNITED STATES PATENTOFFICE.

GRAVE-r-RECORD.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 5, 1907.

Application filed September 11,1906. Serial No. 334,202-

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS P. Free, a citizen of the United States,residing at Farmington, in the county of St. Francois and State ofMissouri, have invented a new and useful Grave-Record, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to means for holding the records relating to adeceased person, and is intended more particularly to be placed at thegrave of such person.

The principal object is to provide a receptacle that can be readilyattached to a tombstone and is durable to withstand the deleteriousinfluences of the elements, said receptacle having novel and effectivemeans for containing the records of the deceased in such a manner thatsuch. records can be readily examined and yet are fully protected fromthe weather.

An embodiment of the invention that is at present considered thepreferable one is illustrated in the accompanying drawings, where- 111Figure 1 is a front elevation of a tombstone, showing the device appliedthereto. Fig. 2 is a perspective View of said device with the doorpartially open. Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view. Fig. 4 is across-sec tional view, and Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view on the line5 5 of Fig. 3.

Similar reference-numerals designate corresponding parts in all thefigures of the drawings.

In the embodiment illustrated a receptacle is employed comprisingupright side walls 6, a rear wall 7, a bottom 8, and a sloping roof 9,said receptacle having an open front. The walls and roof of thereceptacle are inclosed in a sheathing 10, preferably of some mate rialwhich is not affected by the weather. Through the rear wall 7 are formedopenings 11, that receive fasteners 12 for securing the receptacle to asu p0rtas, for instance, a gravestone 13. 11 case a stone is usedopenings, as 14, are drilled into the same, and lead pipes 15 are placedin these openings. The walls of said openings are preferably roughenedor irregular, and the fasteners 12, passed through the openings 11 inthe rear walls of the receptacle, are threaded into the said pipes 15and expanding the same force them into binding engagement with the wallsof the openings. Thus the receptacle is effectively secured to thesupportingstone.

A door 16, secured at one edge to one of the side walls by spring-hinges17, covers the open side of the receptacle and has its outer faceprotected by a sheathing 18. The upper or roof portion of the receptacleprojects beyond the front edges of the side walls 6, and consequentlywhen the door 16 is in closed condition its outer face will besubstantially flush with the front face of said roof portion, as shownin Fig. 8. The free upright edge of the door is provided with a flange19, that is arranged to overlap the front edge of the adjacent side wall6, and thus cover the joint between the two. A handle 20 providesconvenient means for opening the door against the resistance of thesprings 17.

Detachably secured to the rear wall 7 of the receptacle by suitablefasteners 21 is a panel 22, having a glass or transparent face 23, thatis adapted to receive the portrait of the deceased person. A similarpanel 24 is detachably secured to the inner face of the door 16 andconstitutes convenient means for holding a photograph, a favorite poemor piece of music, or any similar article the friends of the deceasedmay wish to place therein. The door is furthermore provided contiguousto its rear edge with a rearwardly-extending supporting-flange 25,rigidly carried by said door and having fastened to its rear margin by aspring-hinge 26 a plate 27, having panels 28 secured to its oppositesides. The spring-hinge 26 serves to urge the plate 27 toward the door16. The movement in this direction is limited by the abutment of thehinged edge of said plate against the flange 25. The panels 28 aredesigned to receive printed or written information concerning thedeceased or his relatives. An album or holder 29, interposed between theplate 27 and door 16, is swingingly mounted upon the flange 25, a yoke30 passing through the rear portion of such album, being secured to abar 31, fastened to the flange. This album is intended to containphotographs of the family and friends of the deceased per son, togetherwith written or printed matter regarding them.

In this device it is to be denoted that the fasteners are entirelycovered by the rear panel, so that they are not liable to become removedby malicious persons. It will also be evident that a very completerecord and history of the deceased person, his relatives, and friendsmay be arranged within the receptacle and that the same is entirelyaccessible, being compactly arranged when not in use and completelyprotected from the elements. To examine these records, it is onlynecessary to open the door 20 and swing the plate 27 rearwardly,whereupon the album clamped thereby may be readily opened. As soon asthe parts are released they will reassume their normalposition and thedoor will close, thereby avoiding any danger of the records being leftexposed to the elements by careless persons. In this connection it maybe stated that while the present embodiment is particularly intended forholding the records of deceased persons, as above set forth, thestructure is clearly applicable for various other uses where it isdesired to place accessible records in exposed places.

From the foregoing it is thought that the construction, operation, andmany advantages of the herein-described. invention will be apparent tothose skilled in the art without further description, and it will beunderstood that various changes in the size, shape, proportion, andminor details of construction may be resorted to without departing fromthe spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of the invention.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. In a device of the character described, the combination with areceptacle, of a movable door therefor, a movable panel associated withthe inner side of the door, a holder movably interposed between the doorand panel, and means for yieldingly urging the panel and door togetherto clamp the same against the holder.

2. In a device of the character described, the combination with areceptacle, of a door therefor, a swinging panel associated with theinner side of the door, and means for effecting a relatively yieldingmovement of the panel and door toward each other.

3. In a device of the character described, the combination with areceptacle, of a door therefor, a swinging panel associated with theinner side of the door, means for yieldingly urging said panel towardthe door, and an album mounted between the door and panel and held inclosed condition thereby.

4. In a device of the character described, the combination with areceptacle, of a door, spring-hinges connecting the door and receptacleto urge the former to closed condition, a support carried by the innerside of the door and panel springhinges connecting the panel to thesupport and urging said panel toward the inner side of the door, and analbum hinged to the support and interposed between the door and panel.

5. In a device of the character described, the combination with areceptacle having a rear and side walls, and an open front, of aprotective sheathing covering the receptacle, fastening means passingthrough the rear wall for securing the receptacle to a support, a doorfor the open front of the receptacle, spring-hinges connecting the doorand receptacle for urging the former to its closed position, a sheathingcovering the outer face of the door, a rearwardly-extending supportrigidly affixed to the inner side of the door adjacent to its hingededge, a panel secured to the inner side of the door, a swinging plate,spring-hinges connecting the plate to the support, said plate havingpanels on its opposite sides, and an album pivotally mount- (ad on thesupport between the plate and the cor.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

THOMAS P. PIGG.

Witnesses:

ROBERT FoRsYTn, J. E. COVER.

